The Ottawa Senators recently shifted their focus from the ice to the life of a young patient at Saint-Vincent Hospital, replacing a personalized hockey souvenir after it was stolen from his mother’s car on March 11.
The original print is a signed photo of star players Jason Spezza and Erik Karlsson.
It went missing from the car parked on Cambridge Street North and Primrose Avenue, just across from the hospital.
According to a police news release, the perpetrator used a rock to smash the rear window of the vehicle in broad daylight.
Justin Greer, whom the police identified as a “sick young boy” victimized by the crime, is a patient suffering from spina bifida. He recently moved from the Civic Hospital to Saint-Vincent to recover from back surgery.
Soon after news of the theft spread, the Senators decided to try to help make the situation right.
“It was more Jason and Erik taking it upon themselves,” says Brad Weir, director of communications at the Senators Foundation. Spezza, the team’s captain, included a personal note for Greer in replacing the stolen artwork.
The Senators also sent the boy a special package including “a team jersey autographed by the entire team and two personalized photos,” says Brian Morris, director of communications for the Senators.
The police say the investigation is ongoing but the case of the stolen hockey gift highlighted a recent spike in the number of “smash-and-grab” thefts in downtown Ottawa.
Police have identified the area bounded by Bronson Avenue, Elgin Street, Wellington Street, and Cooper Street as the area with the highest reported rates of thefts from vehicles in Centretown.
According to police, one reason that makes this particular area popular for this kind of theft is “the high concentration of vehicles in both surface and underground parking lots.”
Another factor is “the number of individuals suffering from substance abuse issues who reside within the above mentioned boundaries or in the immediate outlying neighbourhoods,” says Sgt. Ian McDonnell of the Ottawa Police Service.
“Theft from vehicles is a relatively low risk crime of opportunity that offers a quick return which allows the perpetrator to feed their addiction.”
The Ottawa Police Service rolled out the “All Valuables Removed” warning card campaign in July 2011, designed to let would-be-thieves know not to bother searching a vehicle and alerting others to take the same precautions.
In addition to educational programs like this the police monitor crime trends, which allow officers to target high risk areas using a variety of investigative techniques.
“The crime analyst also monitors known offenders living within the district as well as individuals recently released from custody,” says McDonnell.
“This intelligence is disseminated throughout the service to assist Patrol and Neighbourhood officers with proactive policing initiatives.”
He also says Const. Matthew Hunt of the Centretown Community Police Centre is in regular contact with members of the community at a more grassroots level to identify crime trends and potential suspects.